Oconto, Nebraska climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Oconto's normal year runs from 13°F January nights to 87°F July afternoons. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 9.7°C, January lows of −11°C, July highs of 31°C.
- NOAA stationOconto
- Station IDUSC00256167
- Location41.14°N 99.76°W
- Elevation2,580 ft (786 m)
- From the centerunder 1 mile
- Population141
On October 23, the normal high in Oconto is 62°F and the normal low 32°F.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Oconto.
- Jan 38° 13°
- Feb 41° 15°
- Mar 53° 24°
- Apr 63° 34°
- May 72° 45°
- Jun 82° 57°
- Jul 87° 61°
- Aug 85° 59°
- Sep 79° 49°
- Oct 65° 36°
- Nov 51° 23°
- Dec 40° 14°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like in Oconto each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 87°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 13°F.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 38°F | 13°F | 25.2°F | – | <1 | 31 | 9 h 30 min |
| February | 41°F | 15°F | 28.1°F | – | <1 | 27 | 10 h 40 min |
| March | 53°F | 24°F | 38.9°F | – | <1 | 24 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 63°F | 34°F | 48.4°F | – | <1 | 12 | 13 h 20 min |
| May | 72°F | 45°F | 58.6°F | – | 1 | 3 | 14 h 30 min |
| June | 82°F | 57°F | 69.4°F | – | 5 | <1 | 15 h 10 min |
| July | 87°F | 61°F | 74.3°F | – | 11 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| August | 85°F | 59°F | 72.1°F | – | 10 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| September | 79°F | 49°F | 63.9°F | – | 4 | 1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 65°F | 36°F | 50.3°F | – | <1 | 10 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 51°F | 23°F | 36.7°F | – | <1 | 26 | 10 h |
| December | 40°F | 14°F | 26.9°F | – | <1 | 30 | 9 h 10 min |
| Year (annual) | 63°F | 36°F | 49.4°F | – | 32 | 165 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3°C | −11°C | −3.8°C |
| February | 5°C | −9°C | −2.2°C |
| March | 12°C | −4°C | 3.8°C |
| April | 17°C | 1°C | 9.1°C |
| May | 22°C | 7°C | 14.8°C |
| June | 28°C | 14°C | 20.8°C |
| July | 31°C | 16°C | 23.5°C |
| August | 30°C | 15°C | 22.3°C |
| September | 26°C | 10°C | 17.7°C |
| October | 18°C | 2°C | 10.2°C |
| November | 10°C | −5°C | 2.6°C |
| December | 4°C | −10°C | −2.8°C |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, Broken Bow (2 mi W) (19 miles away), gets 30 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00256167; annual normals. Wet days: 0.01 inch or more; 90°F days and freezing nights: NOAA's day counts. Daylight: sunrise to sunset on the 15th, computed from the latitude.
When is the best weather to visit Oconto?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, September and October.
That is a measurement, not a recommendation: it counts the months whose normal afternoon high sits between 65°F and 85°F, where a light layer is enough by day.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00256167.
When is the last frost in Oconto?
In Oconto, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 10 in half of years and after May 22 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 1 in half of years and before September 18 in one year in ten.
Frost-free in half of yearsFrost in 1 to 9 years out of 10Frost most years
- Last spring frost, half of years after
- May 101 year in 10 after May 22; 9 in 10 after April 27
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 11 year in 10 before September 18; 9 in 10 before October 13
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 145 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 162 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 30 in half of springs and before October 9 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Oconto in zone 5a in ZIP code 68860, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Oconto's NOAA station is in zone 5a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −18°F (20 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Nebraska · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00256167; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; the station zone: ACIS daily lows, 1991-2020. A 10% date means one year in ten has a frost after it in spring or before it in autumn.
How hot and how cold does it get in Oconto?
In a normal year in Oconto, 32 days a year reach 90°F (3 of them 100°F or more) and 165 nights fall to 32°F or colder.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 32a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 3a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 165a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 33high of 32°F or less
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1962) is 109°F, on July 23, 2012; the lowest is −30°F, on January 9, 1988.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1965, with 35.12 in; the snowiest season is 1982–83, with 48.4 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00256167; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00256167. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Oconto?
Over a year 79% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Oconto, 4.4 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (86%) and March the cloudiest (73%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 76% | 2.2 |
| February | 76% | 3.1 |
| March | 73% | 4.1 |
| April | 73% | 5.3 |
| May | 74% | 6.0 |
| June | 83% | 6.9 |
| July | 86% | 6.9 |
| August | 84% | 5.9 |
| September | 82% | 4.8 |
| October | 78% | 3.4 |
| November | 78% | 2.4 |
| December | 75% | 1.9 |
Source: NASA POWER solar climatology, 2001-2020 (CERES SYN1deg). Satellite-based, for the 1-degree cell (about 100 km across) around the station, so it describes the area rather than the airport.
How much heating and cooling does Oconto need?
A normal year in Oconto brings 6,471 heating degree days, 20% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 817 cooling degree days, 10% fewer than the median (908). Seven months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 2,973 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,232 | 0 |
| February | 1,032 | 0 |
| March | 811 | 0 |
| April | 502 | 3 |
| May | 233 | 34 |
| June | 33 | 165 |
| July | 5 | 293 |
| August | 12 | 231 |
| September | 119 | 86 |
| October | 460 | 5 |
| November | 850 | 0 |
| December | 1,181 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 6,471 | 817 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00256167. A degree day is one degree of a day's mean temperature below 65°F (heating) or above it (cooling); utilities use them to estimate energy use.
Has Oconto been warmer than normal lately?
Over 33 complete years from 1964 to 2015, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 4.3°F per century (+0.24°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Oconto's climate compare?
Oconto is warmer than 55 of the other 136 places with their own NOAA record in Nebraska. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 49.4°F is warmer than 38%.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for every station PlainClimate covers.
Which places near Oconto share this climate record?
2 places have no NOAA station with 1991-2020 normals of their own, and this station is the nearest full record. A place's own climate can differ from these figures, by several degrees where it sits much higher or lower than the station, nearer the coast, or inside a large city's heat; for the larger places the next nearest records are named with their yearly mean, so the spread around them is visible, and places of 50,000 or more have their own page with NOAA's gridded normals.
- Sumner, NE246 people · 19 mi SE
- Eddyville, NE85 people · 12 mi SE
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
Questions about Oconto's climate
What is the coldest month in Oconto?
January, with a normal high of 38°F and a normal low of 13°F. The warmest is July (87°F by day, 61°F at night).
Does it snow in Oconto?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for Oconto's NOAA station; the nearest record that keeps one, Broken Bow (2 mi W) (19 miles away), records 30 inches of snow in a normal year.
What plant hardiness zone is Oconto in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Oconto in zone 5a in ZIP code 68860, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Oconto's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −18°F (20 years, 1991-2020): zone 5a.
How late can frost come in Oconto?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 10; in one year in ten it comes after May 22. Waiting until May 22 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Nebraska climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Callaway, NE18 miles from this station, 49.4°F a year
- Broken Bow, NE21 miles from this station, 50.2°F a year
- Gothenburg, NE25 miles from this station, 51.0°F a year
- Mason City, NE25 miles from this station, 49.5°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made